Fatal Trump Tower fire: No sprinkler system in apartments

The president tweeted about the blaze, commending the firefighters who responded. He said the fire had been extinguished but fire officials remained at the scene for several hours due to the heavy smoke.
USA TODAY

A firefighter looks out from the window of a damaged apartment in Trump Tower in New York on April 7, 2018.(Photo: Craig Ruttle, AP)

President Trump keeps a sprawling, penthouse residence in the building, and his business has offices there. Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro said Secret Service agents accompanied firefighters to check on the Trump residence. Nigro said no Trump family members were inside.

Trump, in a tweet, thanked firefighters and said the blaze was "very confined," citing a "well built building."

Nigro said, "The upper floors, the resident floors, are not sprinklered."

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A firefighter walks in front of Trump Tower on April 7, 2018, after battling a fire on the 50th floor of the building in New York. Four firefighters were injured, including two who were burned, fire officials said. Andres Kudacki, AP

Broken and burned windows are seen after a fire broke out on the 50th floor of Trump Tower on April 7, 2018, in New York City. One person has died and four firefighters were injured in the four-alarm blaze. Eduardo Munoz Alvarez, Getty Images

New York Fire Department and New York Police Department gather outside Trump Tower on April 7, 2018, to assess a four-alarm fire that broke out on the 50th floor of the highrise office building and condominium complex in New York's Midtown Manhattan neighborhood. Alba Vigaray, EPA-EFE

Firefighters look out from the window of a fire-damaged apartment April 7, 2018, in Trump Tower in New York. New York Fire Department officials said the blaze broke out on the 50th floor shortly before about 5:30 p.m. ET. Craig Ruttle, AP

Fire trucks arrive at April 7, 2018, at Trump Tower on 5th Avenue in New York City. Firefighters fought a blaze on the 50th floor of the building owned by President Trump. Laura Bonilla Cal, AFP/Getty Images

New York officers and firefighters assess the scene of a fire at Trump Tower on April 7, 2018, in New York City. One person has died and four firefighters were injured in the four-alarm blaze that broke out on the 50th floor. Eduardo Munoz Alvarez, Getty Images

Water pours from the window of a fire-damaged apartment April 7, 2018, in Trump Tower in New York. The New York Fire Department said the blaze broke out on the 50th floor about 5:30 p.m. ET. Craig Ruttle, AP

People watch New York police officers and first responders assess the scene of a fire April 7, 2018, at Trump Tower in New York City. One person died and four firefighters were injured in the four-alarm blaze that broke out on the 50th floor. Eduardo Munoz Alvarez, Getty Images

Guido "George" Lombardi, immigration adviser Donald Trump during his 2016 presidential campaign, sits for a photograph Sept. 29, 2016, at his Trump Tower apartment in New York City. "To me this is the center of New York City, and New York City is the center of the world," he said. Bloomberg via Getty Images

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Safety advocates wanted older apartment buildings to be retrofitted with sprinklers when the city began requiring them in new residential high-rises almost 20 years ago. Developers argued that the vast majority of fatal fires rage in smaller multifamily homes, not high-rises.

Nigro said more than 200 firefighters rushed to the scene. They found the apartment "entirely on fire, (but) members pushed in heroically." The victim, Todd Brassner, 67, was rushed to a hospital and died a short time later.

"This was a very difficult fire," Nigro said. "As you can imagine, the apartment is quite large. We are 50 stories up. The rest of the building had a considerable amount of smoke."

We found fire on the 50th floor of the building. The apartment was entirely on fire. Members pushed in heroically, they were knocking down the fire and found one occupant of the apartment who is in critical condition -#FDNY Commissioner Nigro gives update on 721 5th Ave 4th alarm

Eric Trump, one of the president's sons who helps head the Trump Organization, which has headquarters in the tower, tweeted his praise to firefighters.

"Thank you to the amazing men and women of the NYFD who extinguished a fire in a residential apartment at @TrumpTower," he wrote. "The @FDNY and @NYPD are truly some of the most incredible people anywhere!"

A fire in the tower's heating systems in January sent smoke billowing from the roof and injured three people, none seriously.